It's the End of the World as We Know It
by Avirra
Summary: The year is 2001.  Twenty-nine years after the A-Team first formed in 1972 after their escape from Fort Bragg.  Hannibal has accepted another mission for his team.  Will it be one mission too many for them to handle?
1. Chapter 1

**It's the End of the World as We Know It**

**Prologue**

**_December 2001_**

Looking at himself in the mirror, B.A. ran a hand over the top of his head. Fifty. He was still adjusting to the thought of being that old. It was all a mental thing though, he knew that. He was still in better health and condition than a lot of folks that were a lot younger.

"Going to hog the mirror all day, old buddy?"

"Watch who you're calling old, Face. You're older than I am."

"By nine months. Not exactly a big deal, B.A. Any way, come on down before Hannibal and Murdock make Momma smack them."

"What are they doing now?"

"Well, Hannibal's trying to add enough brandy to the fruit cake that it might spontaneously combust at any minute and if Murdock add any more ornaments to the tree, the branches are going to start snapping from the sheer weight of them."

"Fools are gonna make Momma miss the days when we were always on the road and she got some peace every now and again."

"You know that's not about to happen. This is our fifth Christmas together since the pardon and I think she still feels like she's making up for lost time."

"She is. We all are. Hell, Faceman, think about it. Me and you? We spent about half of our lives on the run. Been what now? Over thirty years since we all first met? And what do we have to show for it?"

"Each other, big guy."

Both Face and B.A. jumped at the sound of the voice behind them. The pilot was not far from hitting 59, but he could still manage to move as quietly as a big cat when he felt like it.

"Don't sneak up on us like that!"

The grin on Murdock's face was huge as he teased back.

"I don't sneak. You guys just need to adjust your hearing aids."

Face groaned. He knew he'd been asking for it - ever since Murdock had passed the 5-0 mark, Face had made age jokes at his buddy's expense. Murdock was repaying each and every one of those jokes with interest now that the entire team was past that milestone. The only way to avoid the ribbing was to stay near Hannibal. At sixty-five, Hannibal found jokes on aging to be in questionable taste.

"Come on! Hannibal's mixed the punch."

"We shoulda got down there sooner. DId he already spike it?"

"Well - I don't think so. I mean, he put alcohol in it, but I think he forgot to put in the punch. So, technically, can you really spike alcohol?"

B.A. snorted at that.

"If there's a way to do it, Hannibal knows it. Come on, Face."

Murdock bounded down the stairs in a way that made Face jealous. Downstairs, he could already hear Hannibal saying something. Probably to Murdock from the tone. B.A. noticed Face's expression and outright laughed at his long time teammate and friend.

"Karma's done come back and bit you in the behind, Faceman. You kept teasin' Murdock about being an old man and you move like you're the older one now."

"You don't have to rub it in, B.A. You aren't exactly light on your feet these days either."

"He never was light. On or off his feet."

Hannibal was at the foot of the stairs, giving an amused look to the two youngest of the team.

"We have a job, men."

"On Christmas?"

"Nope. Between Christmas and New Year's Day. Might even be able to take care of it so that we have time to catch the ball dropping in Times Square."

B.A. froze on the stairs as he caught sight of Murdock staring straight at him. The pilot was still wearing the grin, but it no longer extended to his eyes. A light nudge to Face completed the body language between the three teammates. It was a language that didn't include their leader. It was a language they had developed because of him.

Like B.A., Face immediately recognized the look in Murdock's eyes. Hannibal had just accepted a job that Murdock had bad vibes about - a job that he hadn't known about a couple of minutes ago.

In their thirty plus years together, there were some things that B.A. had come to accept about his teammates without question. One - Hannibal on the jazz was one dangerous SOB. Two - Face could charm the pants off the President if he really wanted to. Three - Murdock didn't get bad vibes without a reason.


	2. Chapter 2

**Part II**

_**December 25, 2001**_

"B.A. - Baby - Hannibal - Face! Breakfast is ready, boys!"

As he bounced into the room, it dawned on Mother Baracus that Murdock had both already been up and in the den where the tree was. She laughed as she opened her arms to him and found herself wrapped in a hug that was firm, but warm and gentle. Just like Baby himself in so many ways. Kissing him on the cheek, she returned the hug then gave him a light pat as they pulled apart.

"How long have you been up, Baby?"

"Not too long, Momma. Just since a little before dawn."

She paused and then reached up, lightly touching his face.

"You didn't have a nightmare again last night, did you, Baby?"

"No, Momma. I just wanted to get a good fire going and make sure the tree was all pretty for this morning. Merry Christmas, Momma."

Mother Baracus was skilled at spotting lies, but Murdock didn't lie to her. He just omitted the fact that he hadn't had a nightmare because he hadn't allowed himself to go to sleep. But he also told the truth about only being up since a little before dawn. Of course, he'd just been laying on his bed staring at the ceiling, but he hadn't been up.

"Merry Christmas, Baby. Come on. I hear the others stirring. We'll all have breakfast, then we'll go in the den and see what all you've done."

B.A. came over and gave his mother a hug next as Murdock was going around the table, pouring out the juice. Face let out a heavy sigh and turned to Hannibal.

"There's something slightly obscene about being that energetic before noon. Murdock, how do you -"

Face lost both his breath and his train of thought as he found himself wrapped in a hug - seemingly one delivered by an octopus. He staggered back slightly from the force of the greeting from his best buddy.

"Merry Christmas, Face! Merry Christmas, Hannibal!"

Better braced for the pilot's onslaught than Face had been, Hannibal just chuckled and gave a light hug in return before Murdock headed over for B.A. With Momma in the same room, he knew he could get in a major hug on B.A. without fear of retribution. Well, not immediate retribution.

"Merry Christmas, big brother!"

The warning noise from Mother Baracus wasn't even needed. There were some things that B.A. has mellowed out about over the years and Murdock's huggy nature was one of them. So long as the hugs were kept within limits and moderated for certain occasions. And Christmas was an allowable occasion.

"Merry Christmas yourself, baby brother. Now set your fool self down 'fore breakfast gets cold. That'd be a sin after all the work Mama put into it."

"Dig in, boys. It will be awhile until dinner."

Eggs, bacon, ham and waffles in the shape of Mickey Mouse's head were all in abundance. Looking around the dining room, Mother Baracus felt quite content. When the boys had finally been granted their pardon, they had pooled some of their funds and bought this place in the suburbs of her beloved Chicago. A warmer clime had been offered, but that didn't appeal to her. Besides, she still had her apartment in the city and, when the boys were out of town on a job, she spent her time there with her familiar surroundings and old friends.

Still, she had to admit that this house was getting more like a home every year. Each of the boys had a room to themselves that was left to their own decorating whims while the rest of the house was decorated as she liked, including the guest rooms. Much as she still loved the old place, it just wasn't big enough for the whole family. This place was.

When the others were starting to show signs of finishing up breakfast, Murdock popped up.

"That was great, Momma. Thank you. I'll go make sure everything's ready."

Alone for a few minutes in the den, Murdock double-checked the heavily laden tree, then moved to kneel in front of the fireplace. The logs just needed a slight adjustment to be picture perfect. After the needed nudge with the poker, he took a deep breath and gazed at the heart of the flames.

His jovial mood slipped off like a mask falling away. There was no trace of a smile on the pilot's face or in his eyes. Despite the fire right in front of him, Murdock had a chill that was deep in his bones. He'd had it ever since Hannibal mentioned the job. No details yet. He was doing his best to convince himself that it was just paranoia rearing its ugly head again. He wasn't buying it though.

Face came in next and saw the position Murdock was in. The whole attitude made him swallow hard. He moved over and laid his right hand on his friend's left shoulder.

"I know, buddy. I know. We'll talk about this later, but the others are coming now."

The pilot's right hand rose up and settled on top of Face's hand, then he looked over his shoulder at his best friend and nodded.

"I'll be fine. I'll be better than fine. I'll be spectacular."

Just as if someone flipped a switch, Murdock lit up as bright as the Christmas tree as Mother Baracus entered the room. The tree and fire were admired, presents given out and opened, carols sung and the entire time Murdock kept up an energy level that deep down he knew he was going to pay for later. He pretended to eat too much at lunch and went for a nap. He'd made a habit out of taking a siesta, so none of them questioned why he was taking a few minutes away.

Closing his eyes, Murdock whispered his mantra to himself. _Keep everything inside. Make sure Momma has a good day._

That mantra was important to him because quite frankly? He was pretty sure New Years was going to suck big time.


	3. Chapter 3

**Part III**

_**December 26, 2001 - AM**_

Boxing Day. Not that it really meant much to the team per se, but the day after Christmas was a day that Mother Baracus spent at her morning at church helping to sort out the donations that had come in over the Christmas holidays. That meant that the team had the house to themselves to talk business.

Hannibal poured himself a cup of coffee before turning his attention to his team who were seated around the table waiting for him to begin.

"Alright, men – time for the details. We're going to be assisting one George Cage. Disabled Vietnam vet, Staff Sergeant - served in Special Forces. He lives with his twenty-five year old granddaughter, Naomi. It's just the two of them plus a couple of hired hands running a small farm."

"Trouble is that about six months ago, someone started targeting them. They've had a few offers to buy their land - at considerably under the market value. After the first offer was rejected, they started experiencing vandalism. Air let out of tires, fences broken, animals let out of pens – stuff like that. After the second offer was turned down, things went up a notch. Tires were cut instead of the air just being let out. Animals went totally missing. They just recently turned down another offer. Now they've gotten threats left at their doorstep. And one of their sheds caught fire, destroying everything inside."

"Sounds bad. Next refusal might end with someone getting hurt."

"My thoughts exactly, B.A."

"When are we heading out, Colonel?"

"B.A. and I are going to head out shortly to pick up Mother Baracus at the church. She already knows that we have a job, so we'll be taking her from there to the apartment. Once we get back from dropping her off, we'll be leaving. Face – you and Murdock take care of making sure everything is in order here at the house and have our gear ready to go."

"Right, Hannibal."

After Hannibal and B.A. drove off, it didn't take long for Face to notice how quiet Murdock was being as they worked.

"Alright, buddy. I said we'd talk. We're all alone right now, so spill it. Have the vibes gotten any better?"

Murdock suddenly moved toward the door, grabbing his scarf as he went out to the porch and took a deep breath of the cold air. He let that breath out slowly before he glanced back and spoke.

"Depends, bestest best buddy. I'm still waiting for news on the limping dog."

A bark immediately behind Face made him come close to jumping out of his skin. After years of dealing with an invisible dog, a visible one that barked was still catching him off-guard. Murdock gave the mutt a friendly glance.

"I wasn't talking about you, Billy J. But you're going to be a good dog for Mrs. Meyers when she comes over to check on you and Billy, aren't you? Yes, yes you will."

Kneeling down, Murdock allowed the wild flurry of greeting from Billy J. J was short for Junior as the pilot claimed that Billy was Billy J's dad. It was, of course, impossible to see if Billy J took after his father, but the little mutt took the term 'non-descript' to new levels of meaning.

"You and Billy been having fun playing, boy?"

Face let the two horse around for a minute before he cleared his throat.

"Limited time, Murdock. What was that you said about a limping dog?"

Keeping his eyes on Billy J and scratching him behind his ears, Murdock blew out another breath, then started. Not by answering Face's question though.

"Faceman? If you wanted a sure fire job for our team that Hannibal wouldn't turn down, give a thought to the bait you'd use. Then look at this job. We have a veteran. A disabled Vietnam veteran. Special Forces, no less. Toss into that equation an adult granddaughter that I'd be willing to wager money on being attractive. Now add in that they're in danger of losing their home due to bullying. Hell, other than someone popping up and kicking the family dog, what more could they have tossed in to rope us into accepting this job?"

Leaning on one of the porch rails, Face ran everything Murdock had said through his mind. Then he glanced over.

"Does seem rather tailored right to us, doesn't it?"

"Like one of your Italian suits, buddy-boy."

Giving Billy J a pat, the pilot continued.

"Knowing how the Colonel still likes to check folks out, I'm pretty sure this Cage fellow is legitimate. I'm also almost equally sure that someone has decided to pick on him with us in mind."

"Huh. So – what do we do?"

"What else can we do, Face? If I'm wrong, someone's bothering these folks to get their land. If I'm right, someone's bothering these folks just to draw us out. Whichever version is the right one, these folks have a bad problem that needs taking care of, right?"

"Right. We need to get B.A. to the side and fill him in on all of this."

"You handle that part, Face. I can keep up a running distraction for Hannibal long enough for that. Then the three of us will be on the same page at least."

"We could just tell Hannibal and pull out on this job, Murdock."

"I thought about that, Face. Honest I did. But if this really is the set-up that my gut is telling me that it is, someone's been working on this for months. One thing we learned in 'Nam is that giving the enemy more and more time to plan is never going to end well. I'd rather us go in now, hopefully with them not knowing that we know we're been manipulated."

"Maybe find a way to catch them in their own trap?"

"That would admittedly be ideal. Com'on, Face. We'd better get back to securing the house before they return. Colonel will ask too many questions if we aren't ready to roll."


	4. Chapter 4

**Part IV**

_**December 26, 2001 - PM**_

As he drove the van toward the small farm, B.A. thought over what Murdock had spoken to Face about. The more he thought about it, the more he was inclined to agree that the setup seemed more than just a little too targeted at them. And the more he found himself agreeing with Murdock, the more it worried him.

Oh sure, the Crazy Fool didn't act anywhere near as crazy as he used to, but even so, it didn't feel right. After all, Murdock still claimed to have that invisible dog of his. Not only that, he claimed the dog that Hannibal had finally allowed him to keep was the invisible dog's puppy. Stuff like that still got on his nerves to a degree - especially when he found himself acting like the invisible dog was real before he remembered that it wasn't. Fool was going to eventually make them all crazy.

And speaking of crazy, Murdock was singing in the back of the van again. Well, at least the Fool had a nice singing voice when he wasn't screwing around..

_~She checks out Mozart while she does Tae-bo~ *_

For his part, Face gave his friend a bemused look and wondered if Murdock was singing a real song or one that he was making up as he went along? With the lyrics? Could be either way. Certainly wouldn't be the first time that Murdock made up his own background music.

_~Your best friend always sticking up for you even when I know you're wrong~ *_

Well, the tune was odd, but catchy. Face finally decided that it must be a real song - if for no other reason than there seemed to be a repeating chorus. Murdock's own inventions rarely had much in the way of that much structure.

Hannibal quirked a smile, pleased that over the years they had finally meshed to the point where they could all be in van for a road trip without threats having to be exchanged every hundred miles or so. Then he took a look at the map in his hands.

"Should only be about fifty-nine mile more, B.A. We should get there just before dark."

Leaning forward, Face cast a glance toward the map.

"Have they already received another offer on their place, Hannibal?"

"Yes. That's why we aren't waiting any longer to get there. I asked them not to respond to it until tomorrow to give us a chance to arrive and be in place before."

When they arrived, Face was glad he hadn't taken Murdock up on the wager. As the pilot had guessed, the granddaughter was a knockout. And seemed attracted to Murdock as well.

Over dinner, they got to know the pair a little better. Cage had bought the small farm with the aid of a VA loan. They raised dairy goats, chicken, had a plot of grain to help provide feed for the animals, a vegetable garden to help feed themselves and then the rest of the land was pasture. Nothing large scale by any means, but they had managed well enough.

About mid-dinner, the granddaughter found out she'd mixed up which man was Murdock and which was Peck. Normally, that wouldn't have struck B.A. as odd, but once she'd settled who was who, Naomi stopped paying attention to Murdock and started paying attention to Face. From the slightly bewildered expression on his little brother's face, he could tell that Murdock was trying to figure out if he had insulted her or done something else wrong. If he had, B.A. missed it as well.

It was another instance where the more he thought about it, the more it bothered him. The only thing that changed was that she was corrected on the names. To B.A., that meant she was flirting with the name instead of the man, but why on Earth would she be doing that? An exchanged glance with Murdock told him that the pilot's thoughts had gone in the same direction. Not that Murdock was likely to say anything. As much as he might tease Face about some things, Murdock generally stepped very lightly in matters concerning the conman's ego. His thoughts were interrupted by Hannibal speaking up.

"Alright, here's how we're going to work this. Mister Cage, tomorrow, you go into town and reject the latest offer. We'll spread out tomorrow night and cover the main buildings on the farm. Men - we need someone to cover the equipment shed and someone to stay in the animal barn."

Murdock looked up.

"I generally get along pretty well with animals, Colonel. I'll take the barn."

"And I'll take the equipment shed."

"Good, B.A. That means Face and I will stay here at the main house."

Naomi spoke up then.

"Our dairy needs to be watched as well. I can do that."

Hannibal shook his head firmly.

"Not alone. Face? You stick with her in the dairy tomorrow night. As for tonight? Everyone get some rest. It might be our last chance for awhile."

It was good advice. Murdock just wished that he could convince his mind and body to listen to it. Not wanting to disturb the others with his restlessness, he bundled himself up and found himself wandering the farm in the frozen moonlight. He prowled and poked, looking into every building and at every vehicle. The presence of a small plane on the farm was another puzzle. Sure, it was a little guy that looked like it was used for crop dusting, but a farm as small as this one shouldn't have needed anything as large scale as that.

Hands stuffed deep into his pockets, he continued walking and thinking until he noticed the faint signs in the East that sunrise was coming. Quietly he reentered the house and got back to the room he was sharing with B.A. He thought he'd made it back in undetected until he glanced over and saw B.A.'s eyes watching him.

Flashing him an unconvincing grin, Murdock responded to the answering scowl by moving over close to fill his big brother in on his night's activities in a whisper that couldn't be heard from more than a yard away.

B.A. just listened without comment or sound until Murdock finished, then he reached out and gave the pilot's shoulder a light squeeze before pointing him toward his abandoned bed. Crawling back under the blankets, Murdock reflected on the irony that **now **he was sleepy. He had only had just enough time to really warm up and doze off when Hannibal entered the room to wake them both up.

Hearing Murdock's groan, B.A. offered him a hand up, but didn't speak until Hannibal left the room.

"Don't worry, little brother. We'll make sure you can grab a nap. We need you alert."

* * *

><p><em>* Song snippets are from <span>Drops of Jupiter<span> by Train_


	5. Chapter 5

**Part V**

_**December 27, 2001**_

Hannibal and Face accompanied Cage and Naomi into town so that they could get a better feel for the area while the pair rejected the latest offer on their farm. Once they were alone together and walking along, Face decided to take his life into his own hands and broach one topic that Hannibal rarely liked to speak of.

"Hannibal? You ever think about us maybe just traveling sometime?"

Quirking a look at Face, Hannibal pulled the cigar out of his mouth for a moment.

"You mean look for work further out?"

"We don't have to look for work, you know. The investments we've made - stocks we've invested in. We're not in the lap of luxury category, but we can live pretty nicely on what we have."

The expression on Hannibal's face was puzzled for a moment, then shifted to bemused.

"Not getting soft on me, are you, Lieutenant?"

"No sir, Colonel. I'm getting old on you."

Those last five words froze Hannibal in mid-stride in a way that no other words could have. Still, his first reaction was to brush it off.

"You aren't that old. You're considerably younger than me."

He heard the dare in Hannibal's voice. _You don't dare to call me old._ But Face had known that was coming.

"Colonel? When you and I first laid eyes on one another, it was what? 1970? I hadn't hit twenty yet. Twenty days ago, I hit fifty-one, Hannibal. Not saying I'm not still a damn fine looking man, of course, but one thing I can't con is time."

There was no reply from Hannibal for several beats as those words sort of hung in the air between them. Finally Hannibal cleared his throat.

"What exactly are you trying to say, Face?"

Suddenly breaking into his trademark smile, Face just reached up and adjusted his hat.

"Me? Not a thing, Colonel. Just tossing out something to think about. Speaking of which? Anything about our current job strike you as odd?"

"A couple of things sounded a little peculiar, but then, that's the way with most jobs that come our way. Nothing to make me think of rejecting it."

Face couldn't think of anything to add to that. All he and the others had equated to nothing more than gut feelings. Nothing solid that could be pointed out. The sigh he gave wasn't even audible as Face turned his attention back to looking over the little town.

As soon as the others had left the farm, B.A. called Murdock over.

"Alright, get that skinny rump of yours back in bed. That's an order."

While Murdock had no intentions of fighting it, he couldn't help ribbing back.

"Hey, what's with the orders? Captain outranks Sergeant, y'know."

"Yeah? Well, my fist outranks your jaw. Now go lay down, Fool."

Hands held up in surrender, Murdock grinned as he headed back into the bedroom, grin breaking up as he yawned hugely. B.A. just shook his head and followed along behind to make sure he was settled.

It only took a few minutes for the even breathing to tell him that the pilot was sound asleep, B.A. spent the rest of his morning checking over the farm as thoroughly as Murdock had the night before. No way was anyone going to know the layout here better than he did. One of the rules of war - know the territory.

Overall, some aspects of the farm puzzled him as much as they had Murdock. The equipment was in good condition, but not the sort B.A. would have expected to see on a farm as small as this one. In fact, on a little farm like this, it was practically a waste. The equivalent of purchasing a riding lawn mower to tend to a ten foot square patch of grass.

Glancing over the small plane, he shook his head for what felt like the thousandth time. Maybe his imagination was just over-reacting because he knew how Murdock was feeling? No. No, no and no. He wasn't going to write off the way his own instincts were telling him that things just weren't right. His intuition had helped keep him alive for fifty years now. He'd stay on alert and mention what he'd noticed to Murdock and Face when he could get them alone.

Heading back to the house, he looked in on Murdock. The facial expressions told him that his little brother was dreaming, but that the dreams weren't in the nightmare variety. B.A. releft quietly and sat down with a pad and pen, drawing out a rough layout of the farm.

It was mid-afternoon when the others returned, but B.A. didn't wake Murdock. In fact, he told Hannibal that Murdock had just recently laid down to grab a nap to get a little rest before the night watch. Hannibal nodded at that.

"That actually sounds like an excellent idea. We should all follow suit. These people, whoever they are, have always waited until the day after the offer rejection in the past, but we don't want to assume they'll keep to that."

The team all separated after supper, the ones away from the main house each took some wrapped sandwiches and a thermos of hot coffee with them. As expected by Hannibal, it was a quiet night. Still, next morning, it didn't fail to catch his attention that his three men appeared to be as nervous as a long-tailed cat in a rocking chair showroom.

The looks they'd been exchanging ran back through his mind as did the words Face had said. _Anything about our current job strike you as odd?_

Maybe he needed to take a little closer look at things himself to see what exactly had them all on edge.


	6. Chapter 6

**Part VI**

_**December 28, 2001**_

The next morning, Hannibal ate with his men as they came in from their posts. The words he and Face had spoken in town had been running through his mind all night. He did something that he hadn't really done in years. He **looked **at his team.

With a pang that was close to guilt, he faced the first fact. In his mind's eye, his boys were still the way that they'd been in Vietnam. More mature mentally, sure. But not that different physically. At least that's what he'd been telling himself.

He started with Face. As Face had said himself, he was still a damn fine looking man. But, admit it, there was no way that the Faceman could pass himself off as anyone under the age of 35 these days. Even with the care that Face had lavished on his looks over the years, time had left its marks. A faint smile formed as Hannibal reached for his coffee. Okay, sure - he was older. But still Face in every way that really counted.

His eyes moved to B.A. next. When the hell had he started to show a bit of grey in his hair? Not much, but still there was a touch of it here and there. And B.A. honestly had the most wrinkles among them as well. All those years of scowling had likely had something to do with that. B.A. didn't run around without a shirt on anymore either. Not that he still wasn't in impressive shape, but these days, he only saw B.A.'s bare chest at the beach.

On further study, there was another difference that Hannibal hadn't paid attention to. The gold. B.A. still wore quite a bit, but probably not even a tenth of what he used to sport. When had that happened? Or had it been a gradual dropping of a piece here and a piece there that he had adjusted to without really taking note?

Finally, he looked over to Murdock. Who was sort of doing an almost dance in his chair, eyes closed with his shoulders swaying back and forth while singing that odd little song he'd been singing in the van on the way here.

_~Did you make it to the Milky Way to see the lights all faded and that Heaven is overrated~_

It was a bit odd. Even if you didn't take into account how he still acted like an enthusiastic kid now and again, Murdock now looked the youngest out of them. Though even he couldn't pass for under 35 anymore. Maybe he hadn't gotten the permanently engraved wrinkles that B.A. and Face had because Murdock refused to dwell on the bad things in life. Which was amazing if you sat down and actually thought about what all Murdock had overcome in his life. Hell, what all of them had overcome. Not that Murdock didn't have dark corners, of course. He just generally refused to shine a flashlight at them.

"Fool, will you keep down that singin' while we're eating?"

"Aw com'on, Big Guy. Most places you'd have to pay extra for live entertainment with your meal."

"Keep singing while I'm trying to eat and you'll be the dead entertainment."

Murdock didn't respond to that except to grin. He grabbed a glass of juice and took a sip before his expression and tone both went serious.

"Anyone else get the feeling they were being watched last night?"

"I didn't - but then I didn't go near any of the windows in the dairy."

"I got that feelin'. Reminded me of those days back in the jungle when we knew there was a patrol in the area, but we hadn't seen 'em yet."

"Did either of you see anything?"

"No sir, but the cats told me that there was something I wasn't seeing."

"Cats?"

"Yessir. The barn cats. They're really active at night but there was one point when at least three of them stopped in their tracks and hissed in near perfect unison."

Remembering back on nights and days when birds or insects going suddenly silent had alerted them to unseen enemies, Hannibal couldn't dismiss that cats might have done the same service for Murdock.

"Let's go grab some sleep. It sounds like someone was doing some recon work last night. If that's the case, I think we can expect some hostile actions tonight."

"Will in a little bit, sir. I need a stroll to help digest this fine food."

"Sounds good, buddy. I'll join you."

"I'd best tag along to make sure you two fools stay outta trouble. We won't be long, Hannibal."

Hannibal just quirked a smile externally, while wondering what they were up to. Then he shook his head. Must be getting paranoid these days. Wincing slightly as he got up, Hannibal headed to take a hot shower to soothe his back. His mind might not agree with the facts of aging, but his back never failed to remind him when he stayed in one position for too long.

Settling into bed, Hannibal stared at the ceiling for a few minutes. Damn song Murdock had been singing was stuck in his head. Sighing he burrowed his head under his pillow, wondering briefly if Murdock ever got a break from the songs running through his own head. Probably not. He must just have learned to like it.

Cage woke him about an hour before dark. Hannibal went around in turn and woke his team. They all seemed well-rested enough, so they must not have stayed awake too much longer than he had. As his men headed out to their posts, he noticed that they paused for a moment, Murdock in the center putting an arm around each of the other men briefly. Naomi exited a little later, entering the dairy not long after Face did.

The night passed slowly. Hannibal decided to do a circuit around the outside of the house at around 3 am both to check for another out of the ordinary and to help himself stay awake. Just as he was coming around the corner, he thought he saw a shadow moving from the area of the barn towards the dairy. Frowning, he looked hard into the darkness there, but didn't see any further movement.

He continued around the corner. Could have been an animal that he'd startled, but Hannibal couldn't convince himself of that. He was getting a feeling in his guts that he didn't like in the least. He didn't draw his gun, but his hand was resting on it as he kept moving slowly around the house.

Another movement in the shadows drew his attention, but this time he saw the source of it. Naomi was coming straight for him, sobbing something entirely unintelligible. He tried to move toward the dairy to see if there was a problem with Face, but she grabbed hold of him and he couldn't pull himself loose.

It was just a couple of minutes but also an eternity before he and Naomi were both thrown back by an explosion. Shaking his head to clear it, Hannibal was horrified to see the flames shooting through the roof of the dairy. He must have blacked out for a minute because B.A. and Murdock were already circling the dairy, looking for a way in and yelling out Face's name.

Then Hannibal heard Murdock scream something as he turned and ran for B.A., tackling the big man as soon as he was close enough. Desperation must have given Murdock strength, because he and B.A. both hit the ground just before another explosion went off, sending chunks of the walls of the dairy in all directions.

Untangling himself from Naomi, Hannibal slowly got to his feet and stared. There wasn't so much as a single wall left standing of the dairy. And no sign at all of Face.


	7. Chapter 7

**Part VII**

_**December 29, 2001**_

Murdock slowly got to his feet, watching the remains of the dairy burn like a man transfixed. Then he made a sound that Hannibal wouldn't have thought could come from a human throat as he ran back toward the fiery remains and disappeared from sight.

Hannibal made a step toward the fire himself when his left leg suddenly decided it didn't want to hold him up any longer. He would have fallen but B.A. was at his side before that could happen.

"Come on, Colonel. Let's get you inside. I want to get a look at that leg. You're bleedin'."

As B.A. helped him toward the front door, they had to pass Naomi. Hannibal noticed that B.A. scowled at her as they went by, but when he looked back at the woman himself, he just saw a sniffling woman with her face averted. As soon as the two men were inside the house, the sniffling stopped. She waited to make sure the men weren't coming back out, then Naomi headed off in the direction she'd seen Murdock going.

At the house, B.A. helped Hannibal out of his pants and had him lay across one of the beds.

"Doesn't look good, but could've been a lot worse. You caught some of the shrapnel in your thigh. Some of it's still embedded too. Not gonna feel good, but I gotta clean this out or we'll be dealing with infection."

"Let's get it over with. I don't want to leave Murdock alone for too long."

"He'll be okay, Hannibal. He needs some time to himself. Him and Face been close for a lot of years."

Meanwhile, Murdock came slowly out of the wooded area behind the dairy, not seeming to pay much attention to his surroundings. He almost ran right into Naomi. Muttering something that sounded vaguely apologetic, he swiped a hand across his eyes, then stuffed his hands into his pockets.

"What were you doing, Murdock?"

"Hoping, I guess, Miss Naomi. I thought – you know – that maybe somehow Face might have got thrown out by the explosion."

"But you didn't find anything?"

"Nothing."

"I'm so sorry. I wish there was something I could do to make you feel better."

Her tone was back to the flirting one that she'd used on him his first night there – and that struck him as a highly inappropriate one to be using on a guy in mourning. It was even more inappropriate when she stepped right up and kissed him hard on the lips. He didn't shove, but he did try to push her away gently – he already had a lady, after all. She didn't seem to want to take the hint though. Her left hand pressed against the back of his neck and held him tighter against her lips. Which muffled the yelp he let out when something stung him in the rump.

The sensation starting to radiate from that spot told him the sting hadn't come from an insect. This time he did shove her. She'd injected something into him and that meant the time for being polite was past. She was no lady.

As he backed away from her, his left leg was already going rubbery and didn't want to do its fair share of holding him up. Then he felt someone behind him and heard a voice he'd really hoped to never hear again.

"Captain Murdock. Been a few years, hasn't it? I believe I owe you this."

Murdock tried but wasn't able to resist being turned around to look at one of the few men he could truly say he hated.

"Decker."

His tone was flat but there was a lot of hatred behind it and Decker smirked a bit before drawing back a fist and hitting Murdock hard. When the pilot fell, he tried, but didn't have enough control left of his legs to be able to get back up. A second blow from Decker and he couldn't even make the attempt anymore.

"Help me get him to the plane, then go into the barn and wait there until the plane takes off before you go tell Hannibal that Murdock here went crazy again."

"We've been over this a million times. Don't worry. I did my part with Peck alright, didn't I?"

Naomi took Murdock's feet while Decker took the other end. The drugs made him a dead-weight, but they handled him easily enough.

"This is sort of like a jumbo remote control plane like the kiddies fly, Captain. It won't last long, so try to enjoy your final flight while you can."

Turning back to Naomi, Decker laid a hand on her shoulder.

"The controls are back at my van. I'll be directing it from there. Don't forget – don't go after Smith until you're sure the plane is off the ground."

"Don't be a worry-wart, grandfather. I know what to do."

All the small pieces of rock and other debris made taking care of Hannibal's leg take awhile. B.A. had just finished cleaning out the wound when he frowned and reached briefly into his pocket. He seemed to examine something and then thrust whatever it was back away before he headed for the door.

"Let that air out a minute or two before I bandage it up. I'll be back soon, Hannibal."

B.A. had been gone longer than Hannibal had expected him to be when the noise of an airplane starting up came to his ears. Getting up quickly, he winced at the pain in his leg, but grabbed for his pants. He was headed for the door when Naomi came bursting through it.

"It's your Mister Murdock! He was talking all crazy and then when I tried to get him to calm down, he pushed past me and ran for the plane saying something about he was going to find Face."

With his leg wound, Hannibal couldn't run. That didn't mean he didn't still try. Ignoring the pain, he headed outside and saw that the plane was already in the air and climbing. While Hannibal didn't fly himself, he'd certainly seen Murdock in action enough times to know that the plane was climbing far too steeply.

"Colonel!"

B.A.'s voice made him shift his attention for a moment - but only a moment. Because overhead, the plane made a sound that froze Hannibal's heart in his chest. The engine was sputtering.

In movies or television, planes going down made all sorts of noises. This was like watching one of those shows with the sound turned off. At least until the plane and the ground met. Three beats later, an explosion sent a fireball into the air.

"Murdock . . ."

He forgot all about his injured leg until it gave out from under him again. And as before, B.A. was right there to keep him upright. B.A. - the only member of his team remaining.

The rest of that day was a blur. He knew B.A. finished tending to his leg, but he didn't actually remember it. He just noticed that he had a bandage he didn't recall being put on him. Hannibal also knew he must have eaten at some point because his stomach wasn't complaining. As the day drew to a close, he had the sudden desire to throw B.A. into the van and drive like hell to put as much distance as they could between themselves and this double damned farm.

But in the dark recesses of his mind, he couldn't do that. He wasn't sure exactly what had happened to Face and Murdock, but one thing he had no doubt it. It was deliberate murder. He needed to find their murderer and make them pay. But he didn't want to risk B.A.

"Sergeant?"

The still burly man looked at him with what seemed to be the weight of the world on his shoulders.

"Yeah, Colonel?"

"Tonight, you and I stick together. Like Siamese-twins."

B.A. narrowed his gaze at him.

"Alright. Not **that** close, but close. Neither out of the others sight, dusk to dawn."

And when dawn broke the next morning and they were still together, Hannibal let out the breath that he'd been holding. Maybe these cowards didn't dare deal with more than one at a time.

While B.A. headed inside, Hannibal walked over to where the plane had once been. Looking over the area in the grey morning light, he spotted something that had been blown under a bush. A ballcap. He looked at it a minute longer, then stuffed it into a pocket with a scowl.

Murdock had always had some predictable traits, even at his craziest. He wouldn't have taken off in a plane, glider or helicopter and left his hat behind. As Grandfather Smith used to say - _John, there's a skunk back behind the shed_.


	8. Chapter 8

**Part VIII**

_**December 30, 2001**_

The breaking of dawn found Decker annoyed. He was pleased that both Peck and Murdock were dead, but he had counted on Smith being the only member of the A-Team left by this point. With the two men sticking together though, he couldn't set the trap to kill Baracus into motion. Peck and Baracus were nuisances. Just like with Murdock, he wanted Smith to see his face at the end. To know that it was Colonel Roderick Decker who had finally come out on top. Smith would find out and then join his team without so much as a gravestone left to mark his passing.

Just thinking about permanently wiping the smug look off of Smith's face would make all of this worthwhile. They should never have granted the A-Team a pardon after all of the things that they'd done. Just the amount of military equipment damaged or destroyed in the pursuit of them was staggering. All the damning testimony he would have been able to give in front of the court during the retrial – every piece of it thrown out. So what if he'd falsified official records to have Murdock listed as still being MIA? The man didn't have the right to treatment in a VA facility. Not when he was still supporting Smith and the other two rejects. So what if he'd volunteered Murdock for that research program without proper informed consent? It was all justified. Why couldn't they see that?

Fine. Let them all turn a blind eye. Decker knew the A-Team had played for public sympathy by taking on a job or two to make them look good. It was all a sham. Another of Peck's con jobs. But they wouldn't be laughing about making fools of them all for much longer. Two down and two to go.

Leaning back, Decker thought about that. Did it really matter whether or not Baracus died in a vehicle accident? Sure, it would have been fitting, just like crashing the plane Murdock was in had been. But results. Results were what truly mattered in the end. Decision made, he started the engine of his van unaware of the binoculars focused on him. He had final preparations to make.

Hannibal was pacing and turned down the supper Naomi offered, though he stayed nearby while B.A. ate. He was looking out of a window when a noise behind him made him turn suddenly. B.A. was slumped over the table. Tired as they both were, Hannibal knew B.A.'s sleeping habits as well or better than he knew his own. He also knew exactly how B.A. looked when he'd been drugged. And he definitely looked drugged.

There was a rattling noise and Hannibal saw a wheelchair come rolling into the room. Not far behind it was Naomi. Holding a gun on him.

"Get you sergeant into the chair, Colonel. We have an appointment."

"Who are you? Really?"

"You'll find out very shortly. Now - you can load the sergeant into the wheelchair as he is or the first shot will make sure a wheelchair is all he ever will use from now on."

It wasn't an easy job and his back complained long and loud, but Hannibal ignored it until he finally got B.A. into the chair. Naomi, or whatever her name was, watched the entire procedure and seemed amused. It wasn't often that Hannibal got the urge to punch a woman but this was one of those occasions.

She made a motion with her gun.

"Wheel him out to the porch. I'll be right behind you, so don't try and get cute."

Hannibal eased the wheelchair out and then saw who was waiting. Eyes cold as steel, he looked directly at their adversary.

"Colonel Decker."

"Colonel Smith. Down a few men, are you?"

"Why? You do remember that we were exonerated, don't you?"

"Only because that namby-pamby judge wouldn't allow my testimony to be heard over a couple of minor details."

"Which minor details were those? Did they finally catch up to you about targeting those hospitals over in 'Nam?"

"War, Smith. Casualties are a part of war. We should have wiped out every hospital and every clinic the communists were using."

"What about the civilians that died?"

"Collateral damage. They shouldn't have used the same facilities as their army did."

"They were the only facilities available."

"You always were a bleeding heart, Smith. But no. They threw it out because of your man Murdock. Said that the way I went after him proved I was on a vendetta of some sort. Preposterous."

"Preposterous? You nearly killed him."

"No longer nearly. I corrected that mistake."

"How did you get Murdock to take up a rigged plane?"

"You think I let him behind the controls? Not with that devil's luck of his. I doubt he had the muscle coordination left to wave bye-bye on the way down."

"You son of a bi-"

"None of that. Not in front of my granddaughter. She was a big help to me in getting rid of Murdock and Peck. And now Baracus. What do you say to that?"

Hannibal cast a glance over to the woman, pulling out one of his cigars as if nothing in the world were wrong.

"I'd say she should thank her lucky stars that she only got your obnoxious personality traits and not your looks. So? Where is the real granddaughter?"

"She and her grandfather took a little vacation on my dime. Everything you looked up about him was true. He is a Special Forces veteran and all that. As bait for the four of you, I don't think I could have found much better, do you?"

"No. You suckered me good. Murdock had a feeling about this one. No wonder with you involved."

"Maybe I should have taken him out first instead of Peck. The Captain always was protective of the rest of you."

"We always took care of each other."

"Not any more, Smith. Not any more. Tomorrow is the last day of the year. 2002 will dawn without anything of the A-Team being left but a memory."

From behind Decker came the sound of an AK-47 cocking. Hannibal looked up at the noise and dropped his cigar.

"Yack, yack, yack, yack, yack. And you guys say **I** talk a lot?"

Decker paled and turned to find himself at the end of the barrel of that same AK-47. One held in the steady grip of one very alive pilot.

"Murdock? That's impossible. I loaded you into the bay of that plane myself."

"Oh yes. You most surely did do that. Just like you had that gal of yours drug the Faceman and leave him to die in the dairy."

A slight rustling to the side heralded Face stepping out of the shadows to join Murdock.

"That didn't quite work out as planned either, Decker."

From the porch, Naomi called out.

"I'd advise you both to put down the weapons before I shoot Baracus."

"Now, now. Let's not do anything rash, Miss Naomi."

Murdock didn't lower his weapon, but he called out.

"Well, sir? Heard enough?"

"Quite enough."

Naomi froze as that voice came from the side. From a figure wearing an FBI vest. Who was joined by five others in similar garb, all-armed.

"I would advise you to lay down your weapon, Miss. Or our sniper is going to put a bullet through your skull. Your choice."

With a stunned look on her face, Naomi slowly kneeled far enough down to lay her gun down on the porch floor.

"Good choice. Now, the two of you are under arrest. There's a fairly lengthy number of charges, but I think attempted murder is good enough to start with. We'll compile the rest of the list after the holidays."

As some of the men came forward to take Decker and Naomi into custody, Decker began cursing at Hannibal. But as Hannibal was preoccupied with gathering the men he thought he'd lost to him, he didn't hear a thing.

"Not that I'm not thrilled to see you guys in one piece, but how?"

"Time to go into that later, Colonel. Can we just go home?"

"Sure, Face. That sound good. Real good."

Murdock was fussing over B.A., giving the big man a hug after checking his pulse. Then he began singing as he started wheeling the chair toward their van.

_~Told a story about a man who is too afraid to fly so he never did land~_

One of the men near Decker chuckled as Murdock passed by him - he was around their age.

"The Director will be in touch later, Captain."

Murdock took one hand off the chair long enough to flash a thumbs up, but never missed a beat of the song.

_~Tell me did the wind sweep you off your feet~_

Chuckling, Face started to follow in Murdock's wake.

"We'll be hearing that song all the way home now, you know."

Draping an arm across Face's shoulders, Hannibal just smiled.

"Don't tell him I said so, but I'd even listen to that Small World song all the way home. Just so long as Murdock's with us to sing it."

* * *

><p><em>As in previous chapters, the song snippets are from <span>Drops of Jupiter<span>_


	9. Chapter 9

**Part IX**

_**December 31, 2001**_

It was around 1 am. They were about halfway home when B.A. started coming out from the effects of the drugs. Face spotted an all-night diner and suggested that he personally could go for something warm. All it took was B.A. muttering something about a bathroom and Face was pulling into the parking lot.

As Murdock helped B.A. out of the van, Hannibal noted that they looked like a group out to grab a bite after perhaps one too many at a bar. That struck him as funny considering he was the only one of them that could be considered a drinker and even he didn't indulge all that often. While Murdock continued to support his adopted brother all the way to the bathroom, Hannibal and Face grabbed a table.

The waitress that came over was what Hannibal termed a 'comfortable beauty'. Ruth was a lady in probably her mid-forties who was aging well enough and was comfortable enough with her wrinkles that she saw no need to try to beat back the hands of time with a bucket load of makeup. Her dark hair had a few streaks of grey that were quite becoming. She flirted back amiably when he and Face jostled for her attention.

B.A looked considerably better and was fully under his own power again when he and Murdock emerged from the bathroom area. Once they were all settled and Ruth had left with their orders, Hannibal began to nudge for details.

"So, how did you guys get out of Decker and Naomi's traps?"

In answer, B.A. reached into his pocket and pulled out a small device a little larger than a lighter. Murdock and Face pulled out identical ones. Holding his out, Murdock offered his to Hannibal.

"Just hold it, Colonel. Face?"

Face gave his a squeeze and the device in Hannibal's hand gave off a steady uninterrupted vibration. Then B.A. squeezed his and the device gave steady pulses of about 5 second duration. B.A. then traded with Hannibal and set off Murdock's device - it caused what Hannibal thought of as a strobe effect - constant shifting between stronger and weaker pulses.

"B.A. rigged those for us so that if we had a bad feeling or something funny started happening, we triggered them and the other two of us knew who was possibly in trouble."

"That shadow I thought I saw coming from the barn heading toward the dairy - that was you responding to Face's SOS."

Murdock nodded.

"I had to wait until Naomi was out of sight. I was just lucky I was able to get the Faceman drug far enough away before the first blast went off."

"So that's how you and B.A. were there on the scene so fast. I thought I'd blacked out for a minute. So, if you knew Face was safe, why did you panic?"

"That's just it, I **didn't** know Face was safe. That second explosion sent chunks of rocks everywhere and I knew Face couldn't have gotten out of the way of them on his own."

"There was a bad moment or two. They missed me by a decent margin, but it sure didn't look like that when they were still in the air and coming my way, let me tell you."

They all fell silent as Ruth delivered their orders, then B.A. took up the story.

"So I while I was taking care of your leg, I felt Murdock's signal and knew something was up. Stayed in the shadows and saw Decker and then things made a lot more sense. Once they left Murdock alone, I hauled him back out of the plane 'fore it took off. Tossed in a bale of hay just in case too big of a weight difference might have been noticed. When I felt the sting while I was eating, I sent out my signal. You know the rest."

Picking up his fork, Hannibal just looked at it for a minute before speaking.

"You guys would actually prefer if I didn't go looking for jobs any more, wouldn't you?"

The three exchanged looks, then Face spoke.

"Well, there are places we'd kind of like to explore without looking at them through a gun sight. But we all know what the jazz means to you."

"You goofballs haven't figured out yet that you three are more important to me that the jazz? Besides, I'm sure I can find other ways to get it without risking our necks on a regular basis."

"Besides, trouble seems to find us even if we ain't looking for it."

"The Big Guy has a point there, Hannibal. And we have had offers now that the military's not after our collected behinds. Consulting work. Training."

Nodding, Hannibal finally stabbed his fork into his food.

"It's the end of life as we know it, men."

Laughter came out of Murdock at that.

"That's a tad melodramatic, Hannibal. We've always been moving from chapter to chapter. We're in the same story. Just another new chapter. Book that just keeps repeating the same chapter gets mighty dull. And we have been accused of many things, mis amigos, but not of being dull."

"Scary as it is to say it out loud, Fool's right, Hannibal. Just a change. We all still together. Anybody crazy enough to want to change that?"

"Not likely, Scooter."

"Watch it, Baby or you gonna be going back to Momma in a cast."

Exchanging a look with Face, Hannibal started laughing himself.

"Let's eat up and get going. We need to get home so we can celebrate New Year's Eve properly with Mrs. B."


	10. Chapter 10

**Part X**

_**December 31, 2001 - January 1, 2002**_

Mother Baracus was more than a little relieved when the team arrived at her apartment around lunchtime on the 31st. Hannibal had known that she hadn't been particularly happy that they had a mission, but then, she never was so Hannibal hadn't thought too much about it. At least not until they went inside her apartment and found her having coffee and conversation with four other women.

Murdock broke from the pack first and caught his long-time lady friend Bethany up in a hug that turned into a twirl. Annie Wilkins turned around and went to greet B.A. as Hannibal just frankly stared. Maggie Sullivan was about the last person he would have expected to see in Chicago. The only one not particularly surprised by who was there to greet him was Face. He and Karen had long since developed a comfortable relationship.

In the end, the team decided to greet the New Year in the city. Even last minute, Face showed his scamming skills as he managed to get them VIP tickets at the Grand Ballroom. Since there were ten tickets, they had Mother Baracus talk of friend of hers - another lifelong baseball fan - into going with them - though both B.A. and Murdock gave the man a thorough looking over.

There was live music including Cheap Trick and Poi Dog Pondering. Murdock and Bethany ended up wandering over to the lounge where there was dancing, but they made sure they were all together in the balcony for the countdown to midnight. After they had all toasted the first seconds of 2002, Hannibal motioned for their little group to come a bit closer so that they could hear each other over the noises of celebration all around them.

"Some say that how a year begins is a sign of how that year will go. If that's the case and this year finds us surrounded by our family, friends and loved ones, 2002 should be a damn fine year."

Face grinned and raised his glass again.

"I'll drink to that."

"Even I'll drink to that."

Everyone stopped at that, then joined the usually tee-totaling B.A. in raising their own glasses once more.

Once the celebration was over, they all made their way back home to their house outside of the city with the exception of Mother Baracus' friend. Billy J was half-crazy with delight as he literally leaped into his favorite human's arms. He gave the frantically squirming and licking dog a hug and called out a greeting to the other Billy as he finally convinced Billy J to get back on his own feet.

The house was a little chilly, but one thing Murdock had done was clean out the fireplace and lay logs for a new fire before they left, so he quickly had a cheery blaze going. Most of them were too wound up to even think about going to bed yet, so they gathered around the fire and talked for awhile. Mother Baracus was the first to head off to her room. After that, pairs slowly started making their own way to the various rooms until Hannibal and Maggie were left as the only ones still in front of the fire.

"Penny for your thoughts, John."

"I had my boys mortality shoved in my face, Maggie. I can't say that I like it."

"No-one would like that."

"It's more than that. It was the fact that I never realized that they were willing to put their necks on the line just because they think that the jazz is something I need to be happy. I could have lost all of them because of that."

"They love you, John. You've always known that. Maybe you just lost sight of how deep it goes."

"You, Doctor Sullivan, are a very wise woman. So - it looks like the fire is dying down. Care to come to my room and see my etchings?"

"That is a very old come-on line, Hannibal."

"I'm not exactly a spring chicken myself, Maggie."

Getting up, he extended his hand to help her to her feet.

"Possibly not, but I think there's still life in the old bird yet."

Pulling her on into a kiss, Hannibal followed that by giving her a smirk as they headed toward his room.

"I most certainly hope so."

Watching later through his window as the morning sun cleared the horizon, Hannibal drew in a satisfied breath. Yes. 2002 was already shaping up to be a very good year.

* * *

><p><em>Notes on the ladies with the boys:<em>

_Bethany is one of my own OC's and made her first appearance in **Magic and Mayhem**._

_Annie Wilkins is also an OC, who made her first appearance in **See No Evil, Hear No Evil**._

_Dr, Maggie Sullivan is canon and appeared in two A-Team episodes - Season 1's **Bad Day at Black Rock** and Season 2's **Deadly Manuevers**._

_Karen is canon and appeared in Season 4's **Lease With an Option to Die**._


	11. Chapter 11

**Part XI**

**Epilogue**

_**January 2, 2002**_

When the phone rang shortly after breakfast that morning, it turned out to be for Murdock. That in itself was unusual. Murdock didn't get a lot of calls. What really got everyone's attention was when he excused himself to take the call privately.

Everyone tried to keep conversations going but it ended up being a little strained especially when Murdock came back in, sat the phone back down, grabbed his hat and headed outside without a word. Everyone there knew him well enough to know he was upset. Three of them recognized the look in his eyes.

"Ladies? Please excuse us for a few minutes."

Even as Hannibal spoke, Face and B.A. were already going for their coats. B.A. grabbed Murdock's scarf on their way out of the door.

The pilot wasn't hard to find. He was leaning against a tree and looking at the morning sun. Billy J apparently knew something was wrong as well. He was at Murdock's side as usual, but not begging to be petted or played with as he normally did. Underneath the brown leather jacket, the thin frame was shivering. Hannibal didn't think it was entirely from the cold.

"Son? What's is it?"

Of the things they might have expected, Murdock turning while wiping tears from his face wasn't on the list. They moved over in an odd sort of unison, none of them getting in the others way. B.A. looped the scarf around his neck as Hannibal and Face flanked him. Face reached out and squeezed his shoulder.

"Come on, buddy. Talk to us."

Taking a deep breath and closing his eyes, Murdock finally gave a nod. They had to listen closely because he spoke so softly with a voice that seemed strained.

"You know how folks always say that karma comes around to deserving folks, right? On one hand, it's poetic justice. On the other hand, I can't bring myself to think about it happening to anybody."

There was a frown on B.A.'s face at the distress showing plainly on Murdock. Then he remembered something he heard at the farm.

"I wasn't all the way with it, but when you were wheelin' me to the van, that guy said something to you about a director callin' you. That have anything to do with this?"

Swallowing hard, Murdock just nodded. The others didn't prod any more. They waited. Murdock wrapped his arms around himself.

"The director is one of the ones that called the shots on behalf of the goverment on those missions I did for the CIA. There's some sort of under the table deal going on with the Vietnamese government. I don't know what we're getting out of the deal, but they're getting a war criminal sent over."

"Decker?"

Murdock nodded again as his shivering got worse. Face wasn't quite sure what to say. In his opinion, Decker was getting no less than he deserved, but Decker had been cruelest to Murdock. If his friend was having difficulty thinking the punishment fit the crime, he didn't know what he could say to ease Murdock's mind. A glance to B.A. showed him that he was equally at a loss. The silence hung over them for what seemed a long time before Hannibal spoke.

"Captain. You've got a good heart, but follow me here for a minute. Do you have any doubt that Decker ordered those hospitals to be bombed?"

"No doubts at all."

"If you had been kin to any of those civilians and you found out the guy responsible just - went home?"

"I'd be pissed, but -"

In a move that seemed to surprise even him, B.A. reached out and drew Murdock to him.

"You listen and you listen good, baby brother. This ain't on you. Not any of it. Other folks made that call. Person that set all this into motion was Decker himself."

"But I'm the one that called -"

"If you hadn't called, one of us would have. End of statement."

"Buddy, we know what is likely to happen over there. Not a one of us is making light of that. But frankly, it was a long time coming. Yes, it was war, but we know he wasn't just following orders. He was making decisions that intentionally targeted non-military personnel. I'm sorry if it makes me sound insensitve, but I really can't work up any sympathy for the guy even if I discount the fact he tried to kill us in cold blood."

"No. You don't sound insensitive, Faceman. I just sound like an idiot."

"You aren't an idiot, son. I have mixed feelings myself. That old saying is true about there being some things you wouldn't even wish on your worst enemy. His fate is in the hands of others now though. You're the one I'm concerned about."

"I'll be alright, sir. The call just took me off guard. I thought maybe they'd re-commit him. Or maybe try him for attempted murder. Or maybe even try him for possession of bombs. Shipping him off to Vietnam? Not even a vague back of the mind thought."

"Just answer me one question. You aren't tempted to try and break him out, are you?"

"I'm formerly crazy, sir - not currently stupid. Be like reaching out a hand to stop a rattlesnake from falling."

"Good man. Come on. Let's all head back inside. The ladies are waiting for us."

Murdock took a long breath and then seemed to shrug off the darkness again like an old blanket. Face never could figure out how Murdock was able to do that.

"You know, we should have waffles for lunch."

"We had waffles for breakfast, Fool."

"So? I like waffles. I wonder if there's a Waffle of the Month Club?"

"I think there's a Syrup of the Month Club."

"Face, don't be encouraging him, man."

Following along behind, Hannibal just smiled. His boys might not be fully back to normal, but they were headed there.


End file.
